Saleh Bay whale shark rules: the law, distances and group limits

By Sumbawa Liveaboard Editorial Desk

Whale sharks are fully protected in Indonesia under Decree 18/KEPMEN-KP/2013, but we cannot quote a binding legal distance for swimmers. The figures people repeat come from two places: Amanwana's guest code, with 6 guests and 3 to 4 m, and a Konservasi Indonesia study, with 8 people. Follow the stricter figure unless your operator shows you otherwise.

Are whale sharks protected in Indonesia?

Yes. The legal basis is Decree 18/KEPMEN-KP/2013 of the Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, dated 20 May 2013, which gives the species full protected status. The listing sits on the ministry's legal database, which showed it as in force when we checked in November 2026. Internationally, the IUCN Red List classes the whale shark as Endangered, last assessed in 2016 under criteria A2bd+4bd, with a decreasing population trend.

Protected status settles the animal's legal standing. It does not by itself give a tourist a swimming distance; that detail sits in lower-level documents, and those are harder to read directly. Konservasi Indonesia also records Saleh Bay as one of the country's national priority sites under the whale shark action plan, so national and provincial attention overlap in this one bay.

Which national and provincial rules apply to Saleh Bay?

Below is each instrument named in the sources, with a plain note on how we know about it. Only the first was read at an official source. The others reach us through Konservasi Indonesia's publications, so read them as "reported to exist and to cover this", and ask for the text if your decision depends on the wording.

The national plan's period has now run out. A September 2025 meeting evaluated it and discussed strategies for 2026 to 2029. At that meeting, a ministry official was quoted naming tourism that fails to comply with technical guidelines as a point of concern, and warning that poorly managed tourism poses risks both to whale shark health and to visitor safety.

What distances and group sizes are published?

Three sources give usable conduct rules. One of them has the standing of a study, and the other two are operators describing their own practice.

A bagan is the fishing lift-net platform around which these encounters take place. The study's conclusion on people in the water is presented in that study as having fed into Governor Regulation 100 of 2023; the regulation's final wording is unconfirmed. Amanwana's distances look like law because they are so specific, but the document is a resort's, so read them as house rules.

Why do published limits differ?

Six and eight are answers to different questions. Amanwana is setting a house rule for its own guests, on an excursion it sells to a capped group. The Konservasi Indonesia figure comes out of an analysis of how many people a bagan encounter can carry. They were written by different authors for different readers, and neither one corrects the other.

Do not average them, and do not choose the one that suits your group size. If your party would be seven, you are above one published limit and under another, and that is worth raising before you book. Our working advice is simple: when an operator cannot show you the rule it works under, behave as if the tighter number applies, and treat the larger distance as your minimum.

What is reported to happen in the water?

Published accounts say practice can fall short of those codes, so plan for it. These accounts differ in weight, so we keep them apart.

• A national newspaper. Kompas wrote in February 2025 that touching by tourists is common and sends the sharks diving out of view, and that heavier tourism could become a threat.
• One traveller. A travel writer describes a trip with no briefing, where others in his group touched the sharks and a guide pressed him to move closer, while feeding never stopped. He also saw no visitor cap that anyone could enforce. That is one person's experience.
• A tour operator. Ocean Earth Travels says bait is sometimes added by some operators, that a busy dry-season bagan can draw five or six boats at once, and that distance and no-touch rules are not enforced evenly. It sells these trips, so it has reason to contrast itself with others.
• A conservation body. Konservasi Indonesia's 2025 report warns of possible behavioural dependency on bagan fisheries. It adds that more tourism, pollution from land and local fishing could shift how the sharks use the bay unless they are managed well.

The feeding question deserves its own treatment, which you will find in our page on whether feeding at the bagan is ethical. For the science behind the animals' presence, see why whale sharks stay in Saleh Bay.

Is a marine protected area coming?

One appears to be on the way. Mongabay reported in May 2026 that tracking data is feeding government plans for a protected area in the bay centred on whale sharks, with no-take zones under consideration in the zoning, and that this was planned for 2026. We have not found the act of designation, so we describe the area as being established. If you see a page stating that the bay is already a gazetted reserve, ask for the document. Should it be finalised, the zoning could change where boats may operate, so a 2027 itinerary written today may need a second look.

How can you use Decree No. 41 as a checklist?

Decree No. 41 reaches us only as a summary, but its five headings make a good set of questions for an operator, because each one points at something a guest can actually see or ask about.

• Safety standards. Who is the guide in the water, and what happens if a swimmer drifts or tires near a working platform?
• Facilities and information. Will you get a briefing before entry, and in a language you follow?
• Tour procedure. Who decides the order of entry, the rotation and the moment to leave?
• Monitoring and evaluation. Does the operator record encounters or share sightings with anyone who studies them?
• Carrying capacity. How many boats and swimmers does the operator accept at one bagan, and will it wait if the site is already busy?

Amanwana's guide adds some small practical requests worth copying on any boat. It asks guests to remove jewellery, use coral-reef friendly sunscreen and not smoke on board. A vague or irritated answer to these questions tells you a good deal about the morning you are about to buy.

What should you do if a guide ignores the rules?

Most of the useful work happens before you get wet. Our guide to what a Saleh Bay trip involves covers the wider booking questions; these steps deal only with conduct.

1. Before booking, ask in writing which code the operator follows, and ask for a copy. An operator who can name one has given you something to hold it to.
2. At the briefing, if none is offered, ask for one before anyone enters the water. Confirm the group size, the distance and who decides when time is up.
3. In the water, you control your own conduct. If a guide urges you closer or points you at the head of the animal, stay where you are. Do not touch it, do not chase it, and do not swim across its path.
4. If it gets crowded, get back on board. No photograph is worth joining a crowd around the animal, and motor boats close to swimmers are a hazard in their own right.
5. Afterwards, write to the operator with the date, the bagan area and what happened. Keep the reply. The operator's written response is the record you are most likely to have.

What else do swimmers ask about the rules?

Is touching a whale shark allowed?

No, under the published codes: Amanwana's rules and Tiger Blue's stated code both bar it.

How close can you get to a whale shark in Saleh Bay?

Amanwana's guest code asks for 3 m from the side and head and 4 m from the tail. That is a resort's code and not a confirmed legal distance.

How many swimmers can be in the water?

Two figures are published: 6 guests in Amanwana's code and a maximum of 8 people in the Konservasi Indonesia study. Each comes from a different kind of document.

Is Saleh Bay already a marine protected area?

Not as far as we can confirm. Mongabay reported in May 2026 that one was being established.

Has a new national plan followed the 2021 to 2025 one?

Not yet, as far as we can tell. A September 2025 meeting evaluated the plan and discussed strategies for 2026 to 2029.

Which sources support this page?

• Decree 18/KEPMEN-KP/2013, ministry legal database (JDIH KKP)
• Whale shark entry, IUCN Red List
• National whale shark action plan meeting, Konservasi Indonesia
• Saleh Bay whale shark 2025 report, Konservasi Indonesia
• Whale shark tourism carrying-capacity study, Konservasi Indonesia (PDF)
• Amanwana whale shark experience trade guide, Aman (PDF)
• Sumbawa destination page and code of conduct, Tiger Blue
• Report on people and whale sharks, Kompas
• First-person account of swimming with whale sharks in Sumbawa, a travel writer
• Whale sharks of Saleh Bay, Ocean Earth Travels
• Satellite study and the planned protected area, Mongabay

How do I reach the desk?

If you hold the text of Decree No. 41 or Governor Regulation 100 of 2023, or you have a conduct question about a specific trip, use WhatsApp 6281139414563 or write to bd@juaraholding.com.